Quiet
by Arlecchina-Rosa
Summary: Sometimes simple silence speaks louder than words ever could. Gilbert learns this firsthand when he pays a visit to shy, beautiful Lili Zwingli. Inspired by the song 'Quiet' by LIGHTS. Entry for Layne Muffins' awesome song-fic contest. My first and possibly last attempt at writing romance. Expect adorkable sweetness of the finest degree. Prussia x Liechtenstein, human AU.


**...And now for something completely different.**

**For all of you who have me on author alert because of _The Hero's Formula_, or _Hand in Hand_, this one-shot is unrelated to both those stories. I'm really sorry if you were hoping for a new chapter for either of those, and I promise that I will be updating both (hopefully) within a relatively short time. (By relatively short, I mean probably within a week or so for _The Hero's Formula_, and probably a little longer for _Hand in Hand_.) So, don't give up hope! I've been working on them both, and will post new chapters soon! This little one-shot has really just been my writing warmup recently, to get me in my writing 'zone' before writing bits and pieces of my two main stories. (Just so you know, I don't write [or think] chronologically _at all_, which is why my updates are so sporadic. It's not that I ever stopped writing, it's just that I'm sometimes not writing the part of the story that needs to be posted at the moment. It's a personal flaw that I'm currently working on remedying.)  
**

**This story radically departs from my typical writing style and genre. First, it's a romance story, which I am not accustomed to (or really fond of) writing. Second, it's an AU fic, which I don't normally write either (though I actually really do like reading AU fanfictions, it's just not something that I personally write very much). Do not expect that either of these drastic departures will become trends in the future. I am extremely averse to writing romance, as I much prefer the historical aspect of Hetalia (hence the reason I don't write much human AU). I just happened to be fairly depressed lately, and I needed to write something happy for a little while, without any tension, or bickering, or violence, or anger, or any of the things that I typically fill my writing with. So, this short story came about. It's actually also an entry for a contest that Layne Muffins is currently holding, so it's a twofer. Thank you, Layne Muffins, for providing the song that this piece is based on, and the motivation to actually write this story!  
**

**The story is what I like to call a 'quasi-songfic', meaning that it's inspired by a song, but doesn't use any of the song's lyrics. I just used the song as a 'diving board' of sorts, for my imagination to springboard off of. So, no copyright problems here. (Hooray!) The song I used is 'Quiet', by LIGHTS. It's a beautiful song, and for some reason it made me think of this pairing.  
**

**As to the romance in the story, I apologize if it comes across as a little, well... _non_-romantic. I fail at writing love stories, so the romance that I write is always very, very dialed down. My version of romance is really just slightly amped-up friendship, with a twinge of feelings thrown in.  
**

**As for the pairing itself, I don't really know what to say. I personally like it a lot. Prussia and Liechtenstein are actually kind of cute together. It's not like I consider it to be a 'one-true-pairing' or anything, but it's still pretty good as far as pairings go. I don't actually really have any OTPs, since I'm not big on the romance genre. I tend to be pretty flexible as to who ultimately gets paired with who (that is, if anyone actually gets paired up at all), as long as it doesn't involve yaoi, yuri, or incest. The fact that this particular pairing is none of the above pretty much gave it a thousand bonus points to begin with, since such pairings are, sadly, rather rare in Hetalia fanon.  
**

**Okay, since this is a human AU, I'll list the characters I'm mentioning in the story, with both their human and country names. (Though, most of you probably know these already, since they're all pretty popular characters...)  
**

_**Gilbert - Prussia  
**_

_**Lili - Liechtenstein  
**_

_**Vash - Switzerland  
**_

**_Ludwig - Germany_  
**

**Enjoy the story, everybody!  
**

* * *

Gilbert Beilschmidt stood on the front porch of the Zwinglis' impressively large house, shifting impatiently from side to side as he waited for someone to open the door. He was trying valiantly to ward off the absurd sense of nervousness he felt, but it wasn't really working.

The door slowly swung open, and Gilbert was infinitely relieved to see Lili Zwingli on the other side. He'd been half worried that it would be her brother, Vash, even though the volatile Swiss was usually at work during the day.

"Hello, Gilbert..."

She was smiling. At him. And it was irrationally pleasant. He wasn't sure why, but when she smiled at him, he felt almost honored to have somehow brought her a small amount of happiness. It didn't make any sense, it felt so _backward_, but he simply couldn't help it. Lili could make anyone feel fortunate just to be in her presence... After all, it meant that, just to talk to him, she was willing to risk the possibility of her brother showing up and going all "gung ho gunman" on him.

Wait. Maybe that wasn't such a good thing. Vash was downright scary when he saw a man talking with his sister. If Vash were to find out that Gilbert was here, visiting Lili...

Gilbert didn't really want to think about what would happen if Vash found out about this. He decided that was a bridge he would cross if and when he came to it.

"So... How are you, Lili?"

"I'm doing well, Gilbert. And you?"

Gilbert hated that even such a simple question could cause such a reaction inside him, but it did. Everything she said made his heart beat faster. Her very presence sent him reeling with emotions he couldn't explain, or control. He hated to admit it, but Francis and Antonio were right. He'd fallen hard for Lili Zwingli, and there was no changing that fact.

"M-me? Oh, I'm awesome, as always..."

"I'm glad to hear that..."

For some reason, whenever Gilbert talked to Lili, he found himself hard-pressed for anything clever to say. He could banter for hours with Roderich, or Eliza, or West, but whenever he was with Lili, he got so distracted looking into her eyes that he was perpetually losing his train of thought. Not that he was about to admit that to anyone, especially Lili.

"I... brought you flowers..." He awkwardly held up the bouquet of lilies that he'd purchased from the florist this morning. They hadn't been cheap, but, for Lili, it was definitely worth it.

Lili smiled. "Oh, Gilbert, how kind..." She took the bouquet of flowers, and her eyes twinkled with amusement as she looked at them. "Lilies..." she commented to herself, smiling at the intended irony.

Gilbert grinned. "Yep... For the most beautiful lily of all..."

_Wait, did I really just say that out loud? Gosh, that probably sounded so corny...  
_

Lili's cheeks were tinged light pink, but she was beaming. "Thank you so much... Please, won't you come inside? I should find a vase for these..."

The two walked inside, and Lili immediately got to work, humming and sashaying around the kitchen as she proceeded to put the flowers in a vase.

"So, Lili, how is your brother?"

"Oh, he is fine... Work has been rather stressful for him lately, especially with such long hours, but he loves his job more than anything, and I can't imagine him wanting to do anything else..."

Vash was manager of the most successful bank in town, and he'd also given it a reputation as the safest. He'd personally designed the security system, and trained all the guards, equipping them with firearms from his own personal collection. No thief would be dumb enough to try to rob Vash Zwingli's bank, at least, not if they valued their life.

"And how is _your_ brother, Gilbert?"

"West? Eh, same as usual, I suppose. Very quiet, good-natured, responsible... Really quite _boring_, if you ask me..."

"Is he still worried about you coming over here to visit me?"

"Well, ja, but that's just how he is. He worries about anything that has even the slightest 'if' factor to it. I think he's coming around, though. He likes you, he's just a little nervous about your brother, that's all..."

This morning, when Gilbert had announced his intentions to visit Lili, Ludwig had actually begrudgingly wished him good luck. Granted, directly afterward, he had mumbled, '_because you're really going to need it_,' under his breath, but Gilbert had ignored that part. Ludwig was _such_ a pessimist, always fearing the worst about every situation.

Lili smiled, as she poured some water into the vase. "He's looking out for you. That's good. Siblings should watch out for each other."

"Ja, I suppose..."

Suddenly, Lili's mouth opened into a little 'o', as a thought occurred to her. "Oh! I almost forgot! There's something I wanted to show you..."

"Show me?"

Lili nodded, taking his hand and brushing past him, gently pulling him out the back door and into the yard. "I was actually hoping you'd come by today," she whispered, "it's perfect weather..."

_She's... holding my hand..._

He blushed slightly, before quickly snapping himself out of it.

_ No, Gilbert, stop, you're being a dork. Not awesome. You've held girls' hands before, why should this be any different? Stay calm, stay cool..._

"Wh-where are we going, Lil?"

"Not far... I just want to show you something." She smiled brightly, squeezing his hand tighter. Her burgundy dress swished around her ankles as she walked, and her short blond hair fluttered delicately in the wind. Everything about her was entrancingly spellbinding.

They walked for a long while, before Lili finally stopped.

"Here we are," she whispered. Gilbert looked around. They were in a big, open expanse of grass, with little white flowers growing everywhere the eye could see. There was a big, leafy tree in the middle of the flowers, and there was a small, red bird feeder hanging from one of the lower branches.

"It's... nice, I guess..." Gilbert commented quietly, not really sure what else to say. Sure, the view was kind of pretty, and the cool air was refreshing, but he still couldn't exactly see why Lili had brought him here.

"Over here," Lili said, leading him over to the tree. She sat down under it, gesturing for Gilbert to do the same. He did so, leaning against the rough bark with a contented sigh.

"I come here sometimes, when I want to be alone," Lili explained. "It's like my own little world, away from all the noise and commotion..."

"Oh... What do you do, when you're out here?"

"Sometimes I read stories, or poetry... But, other times I just sit and think... It's very peaceful."

"I see..." Gilbert felt somehow privileged to be here. This place was obviously special to Lili, not something she would show to just anyone.

"So... What should we talk about now?" Gilbert asked offhandedly, after they had sat in silence for some time.

"We don't have to talk, Gilbert. Let's just... enjoy the quiet for a little while."

Gilbert frowned. He'd never been terribly adept at staying quiet for long periods of time, mostly because he found it to be so incredibly boring. "Quiet? B-but, what if I-"

Lili gracefully raised her finger to her lips, signaling him to stop talking. Gilbert hesitated slightly, but complied, leaning back against the tree and looking up at the light, fluffy clouds that drifted across the great expanse of blue sky. They looked like sweet, sugary cotton candy, Gilbert noted. He turned to tell Lili about his awesome observation, before remembering that they weren't supposed to talk. He sighed. How could anyone find silence enjoyable?

Lili was staring up at the sky as well, a peaceful smile on her lips. She was positively beautiful, the way her blond hair framed her small face. Her green eyes sparkled with mirth at some hidden thought, and Gilbert felt a little disappointed that he couldn't know what she was thinking about. She looked so happy...

Perhaps the clouds held the answer to Lili's happiness. Gilbert searched them for a deeper meaning beyond the seemingly haphazard arrangement. Aside from the fact that one of the clouds seemed to bear an uncanny resemblance to a Prussian Eagle, Gilbert couldn't find anything particularly interesting about them. He was quickly getting bored.

_Grr... I need to say something soon, or else I'll go crazy!_

To give himself something to do, he plucked one of the small, ivory colored flowers, and began absentmindedly pulling off the petals, one by one.

_She loves me..._

_ She loves me not..._

_ She loves me..._

_ She loves me not..._

_ She loves me..._

He reddened slightly when he realized what he was doing. He set the flower down, and sighed wearily.

It was distinctly unsettling, having to stay quiet. He had gotten perhaps a bit too dependent on his words alone to create in others a good opinion of himself, and now he wasn't really sure what else he had besides words to give to anyone.

Lili suddenly turned to him, green eyes holding a mix of concern and mild amusement.

"You're not used to staying quiet for very long, are you?" she asked teasingly. She took his hand in hers, and gently leaned her head against his shoulder.

Gilbert blushed at the contact, and all the clever things he had wanted so very much to say suddenly evaporated like mist into the air. All he could think of was how beautiful Lili Zwingli was.

"I... think I could actually get used to it..." he responded softly, a small smile gracing his lips. The silence no longer seemed quite so intimidating.

They sat there like that for a long time, in relaxed silence, enjoying the momentary escape from reality. No thoughts were wasted on time, or politics, or war, or meddlesome brothers, or anything but each other. For the moment, it was just the two of them, and the quiet, and that was all that either of them needed.

_das Ende  
_

* * *

**Yes, it's awfully short, I know, but that was kind of the idea. It's not really meant to be taken seriously. It's just a short, slightly sappy little love story that popped into my head while listening to the song, and wouldn't get out until I wrote it down. So, I did. Mostly because Prussia needs something good to happen to him every once in a while. He's going to go through a lot throughout the course of Hand in Hand, (a little bit in Hero's Formula as well, actually,) so he needed some happiness. Lili is such a cute little ray of sunshine, so I gave them both a nice day off from everything to spend with each other. I apologize if either of them are out of character at all, that tends to happen when I try to write romance. Or fluff. Or anything that isn't morbidly satirical and full of sarcastic humor. Dark comedy and satire seem to be my specialties, for some reason... I'm rather out of my element when it comes to writing happy stories, but it's the only way to keep me sane, and also to remind me that life need not always contain only blood, sweat, and tears.  
**

**This is really the first story I've written that not only had a happy ending, but also a happy beginning, and even some mildly happy things in the middle. (_Hand in Hand_ doesn't count, I've only posted the first part, and, trust me, it's going to get _plenty_ sad and dark and depressing over the next few chapters.) When I was writing _Quiet_, it actually felt weird for there not to be some cataclysmic event that ruined everything at the end. Though, I suppose I actually left the ending of the story slightly ambiguous... There's always the small possibility that Vash will come home early...  
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**I hope you liked the story... Review to tell me what you thought!  
**

**Arlechinna Rosa  
**


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